Bath boy named ‘hero’ for helping track down alleged home intruder

WEST BATH, Maine — In a surprise ceremony at West Bath School, 11-year-old Ethan Reno was honored as a “hero” for keeping his cool and working with police on a January afternoon to help track down a man allegedly hiding in the bathroom when Reno and his mother returned home.

When Reno and his mother, Shannon Moon, arrived home the afternoon of Jan 16, the boy allegedly found the man hiding in the shower. An “altercation” between Moon and the man caused him to flee. While Moon regained her composure, Reno called 911, according to a release from the Sagadahoc County Emergency Management Agency Board of Health.

“Ethan calmly provided 911 dispatcher [Alicia] Tingley with information about the situation, describing the address of the altercation, providing a visual description of the suspect, and even offering detailed information such as the fact that the intruder smelled of cigarette smoke,” the release states.

Meanwhile, Bath police and deputies from the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s canine unit located the man whom Reno and Moon identified to police as allegedly hiding in their shower.

On Feb. 13, Bath Police Chief Michael Field presented Reno with the 911 Heroes Award during a surprise ceremony at the school.

Also attending the ceremony were Sagadahoc County Commissioner Carol Grose and Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry, representatives of the Sagadahoc County Communications Center and Sagadahoc County Emergency Management Agency.

911 for Kids is the official education program for local, federal and international public safety, dispatch centers and other organizations committed to teaching children how to save lives and property through the use of 911, according to the release.

“Ethan’s courage and composure under pressure was extraordinary and should be lauded as a shining example of how citizens can help us fight crime,” Field said in the release. “He is a young man, mature beyond his years.”

Tingley, a first-year dispatcher, presented Reno with a medal commending his bravery.

“Ms. Tingley’s professionalism, poise and technique, in tandem with Ethan’s attention to detail made for a perfect case study on how 911 works to save lives and property,” Brodie Hinckley, director of the Sagadahoc County Communications Center, said in the release.